Probably more than any other facet of Apple, we've seen
rumor after
rumor regarding iTunes
fade away in the sunset. Of course, many of those delightful plans were likely shot down by the likes of the MPAA, RIAA and other so-called content guardians, but we say all that in order to depress your hopes on this one. For whatever it's worth, an undisclosed source at
CNET has confirmed an
AppleInsider report that Cupertino is prepping an on-demand video
streaming service for the next iteration of iTunes. Slated to be dubbed iTunes Replay, the service would purportedly "allow users to stream their iTunes video purchases directly from the company's servers for playback anywhere, anytime without eating up local storage." There's no denying that
Netflix's Watch Instantly has been a
universal hit, but that's in large part due to the firm's willingness to
embed that functionality onto all sorts of devices. Is Apple planning on going toe-to-toe with the market leader via your computer and
a box it still regards as a
hobby? We've got our doubts, obviously.
[Via
CNET]
posted Feb 12th 2009 8:53AM
I smell new ATV on the horizon - and I damn hope so.
unless they are planning to adopt netflix's subscription pricing policies this will be no threat to them in any way.
and i meant no threat to netflix....
I agree. Netflix is great because the flat monthly fee gives you a WHOLE BUNCH of options. This iTunes thing is nothing like this: after you've actually PURCHASED the content, then you'd be able to watch it anywhere.
Add in a subscription service to iTunes and this would be a huge hit.
No that's not what Apple is aiming at, what they wanna do is if you purchase a movie from them not only do you get to download it and keep it for ever but they will also let you stream it from their server and watch it in any other device without talking up any extra space which is cool cause i have brought a few movies from itunes and i really don't know what i did with them or where they at
So you can stream it "From their servers to any device"
Hmm....any device has never meant "any" in Apple's past. I'm guessing this is more like "Any Apple device with sufficiently up-to-date firmware"
Please make this available in Canada.
Bye bye Netflix
@Kinger,
You don't get it. You have to *own* the content before being able to stream it. It's not an "all-you-can-eat" subscription service like Netflix. So the one does not compete with the other as represented above.
@Dan, Netflix is not a all you can eat service, Netflix is more like eat what you can service, also it's really hard to claim that their model is a hit when it's offer to customers for free, I mean i love the netflix concept but without having any major studios or films onboard i would say i wouldn't pay 50 cent's for the service which is why it's free i guess
What the hell are you talking about? No major studios or films?
So what the hell are the following Netflix watch instantly films:
Serenity
Superbad
Ratatouille
Next
Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story
The Other Boleyn Girl
The Shawshank Redemption
National Treasure: Book of Secrets
The Any Bully
A Scanner Darkly
Meet the Robinsons
The Green Mile
Full Metal Jacket
Enchanted
No Country for Old Men
Spider-Man 3
Lord of the Rings: Return of the King, Extended Edition
Dan in Real Life
Underdog
The Darwin Awards
Ghostbusters
Before the Devil Knows You're Dead
Gone Baby Gone
21
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
Vantage Point
The Illusionist
The Boondock Saints
And that's just a small sampling of the stuff on Watch Instantly. Stuff that you'd have to pay a couple bucks EACH to watch on Apple TV, Xbox 360 Marketplace or Playstation Store. It's all free on Netflix with your normal subscription.
Add to that the Roku box for only $99, which uses less electricity than the other devices, and Netflix is the best deal all around.
I had an Apple TV alongside my Roku, and I ended up SELLING the Apple TV because I never used it. Roku and my Xbox 360 took care of everything I need. Streaming, video server, rentals, digital purchases, etc. I'm typing this on the newest MacBook (I get a new Mac pretty much every year) but I wouldn't spend the money on an Apple TV now that I see Apple is not very serious about it. They're slow to upgrade, and charge too much for things that I get free on Netflix.
Now, maybe by "major studios or films" you mean the newest things out in the theaters, or just hitting DVD this week. Of course they aren't offering those for free on the Watch Instantly feature, but they might be there later. With iTunes, they will NEVER, EVER be free. You'll have to pay the same as you would at the theater (matinee) to see it on your Apple TV.
But if you're trying to say there are no major studios or films available on Watch Instantly, then you're out of your element, Donnie! There's a ton of great films, from major studios, on Watch Instantly. I've got about 400 items in my Watch Instantly queue right now. I'm not running out of things to watch, and about 1/4 of them are recent, major-studio movies that I skipped in the theater.
Doesn't this mean that the END is near for AppleTV ? When I can directly stream my purchased movies from Apple, why would I need an extra device like AppleTV ?
Uhm, to watch it on your TV?
they should do this with their music too
How much you want to bet AT&T doesn't let them steam videos to iPhones over anything but WiFi. Oh, unless of course the video is under 10MB.
When's that exclusivity deal up? 2010?
You know, I thought that too Docta, but then i realized what they mean is that you would get an actual download for your portable devices on iTunes on your PC... and then it would also give you the option to stream that same purchase via online directly from Apple. At least I would HOPE that's what they meant.
What are you talking about? You can stream ANY size file from Youtube, etc on the iPhone. THe 10 MB limit is only on App Store apps.
aaron hit it on the head though.... Netflix is DVD rental + digital streaming for a low monthly subscription price. Even if I can't stream Ratatouille... I can at least get it on DVD without paying additional monies. $3.99/$4.99 pay per view? No thanks. 4 rentals from Apple TV = One month of unlimited whatever from Netflix. And yes, I go through, on avg, 3 discs a WEEK on top of whatever I stream.
Netflix got it cornered w/ the Xbox though. Think about it... do we think Sony and Apple would ever partner up? I doubt it, Sony is basically a big asshole who don't play well with others (that's not a fanboy thing, I like Sony products, but c'mon... Sony Corporate IS a bunch of assholes) and Nintendo is too protective, they're like isolationists. Seeing as that Apple insulted both by trying to claim the iPhone/touch is a gaming platform... yeah, that idea is gone.
Well, you certainly do go through enough movies to make Netflix a better option. Most people, I would wager, view a couple movies a month at most, in which case iTunes would be a better option, especially if you could stream HD (Netflix's HD streaming is VERY limited and most watch-now titles suck).
This is similar to how a subscription music service is a better option if you listen to LOTS of new music ALL the time, but if you just like to pick and choose a couple songs a month, you'd save a lot more with iTunes, plus you keep the music forever (no need to keep paying).
Netflix stream doesn't offer with closed caption. :(
Umm... you CAN stream Ratatouille.
Seriously. It's on the Watch Instantly Top 50 list right now.
I get your example, but you picked one that is actually available to stream.
more like hearsay of conjecture
Oooo... I notice "CC" as closed caption in there. Look like new Apple TV come with it. Yay!
I've said it before and ill say it again.
I will never pay 3.99 or 4.99 to rent a movie on a internet connected streaming device. With my 15 dollar netflix subcription and online streaming, and redbox right around the corner from me, it is financially stupid for me (or i suspect most consumers) to waste 4 or 5 dollars to "rent" a movie from apple tv. This also goes for you sony and microsoft, with your own video marketplaces.....
If it was a 1 dollar online rental, id do it.
If Apple did it like Netflix and had DVD/ Blu-ray shipments alongside the streaming I might switch. If not, I wouldn't bat an eye at Apple. What Netflix can't get for me instantly, I can easily hit up Hulu's free services for or any one of the networks websites.
I would have to be able to do it straight to my Mac too. I got my PS3 and my Mac connected to my TV. I don't need a third media center device.
They should just rename it iWantEveryThing.
I think this is being misinterpreted. This isn't really apple trying to do a netflix like streaming service, I think this is more of DRM-free videos from iTMS.
You picked the right movie. It seems like the sort of crap apple users would enjoy.
Apple needs to get their head on straight with the Apple TV. They need to understand what Apple TV is, namely, a gateway to selling iTunes content. In the retail world, they have a name for this type of a product: loss-leader. Apple is (stupidly) trying to apply their concept of making a product, charging twice what any other company would, and selling on name and hype alone. While this usually works brilliantly, people are NOT going to pay that much for a streaming box, and then turn around and have to rent movies for $4.99.
Right now, the low-end Apple TV costs $229.00. Let's consider what's inside of the Apple TV (I'll list the price on NewEgg for something comparable, and then a guess as to what Apple could get it for):
- 40GB Hard Drive (can't even buy them this small, an 80GB is $45, Apple price: probably $20)
- Motherboard/CPU/GPU/wi-fi (considering an Atom-based chipset only costs around $80, and this is considerably less poweful, I would have to guess it's a similar price, and for Apple, probably only $60 at most)
- Case (let's use a plan Mini-ITX, around $60 with power supply, so probably $30 for Apple (huge retail markup on these))
- Memory (cheap as can be, $30 for us, $15 for Apple)
- MacOS X (free, doesn't COST them anything, per se)
- Shipping, packaging, labor, and other (I'll be generous here, and say $50)
Total cost of an Apple TV: around $175.
The concept of a loss-leader (which is how the retail industry sometimes works, and also how the console industry (other than Nintendo) works) is that you put out a product that has a service attached to it. You sell the product either at cost or slightly under, in the hopes that customers that buy your product will then use the service, which sells at a high premium compared to cost, and make up for the initial loss on the product.
Using that philosophy, and the total cost of the Apple TV being around $175, I would propose that Apple drop the price of the Apple TV to $99.00. From there, move to a subscription-based model like Netflix, but with their clout in the entertainment industry now, demand that they be able to stream a) newer titles, and b) HD versions of said newer titles. Set up a tiered system of $9.99 a month (three movies), $14.99 a month (six movies), and $19.99 a month (unlimited movies). Most people are likely going to go for the unlimited service. Given a ratio of 60% of the price going back to the studio, 10% going to costs for the service, that leaves 30% of $20 a month left over. That's $6 a month. Over the course of a year, that would be $72. That would cover the loss. Everything past that becomes profit.
This is all assuming a cost of $175 for Apple to make the Apple TV, which is extremely generous. It is likely much less than that.
Apple got to the market too late, and doesn't know what to do when there's a real product actually out there already at a reasonable price.
The whole problem with Apple's service is that EVERYTHING is pay-to-play on iTunes.
Here's my choice if I want to watch Ratatouille:
* Pay $3.99 to watch a stream (or $14.99 to purchase a download) of Ratatouille on iTunes.
* Pay $9.99 to rent all the DVDs I want in a month, including Ratatouille, from Netflix.
* Pay $9.99 for the Netflix subscription, get all the DVDs I want, and stream Ratatouille for no extra cost to my Roku, Xbox 360, or PC.
With the iTunes model, I spend $3.99 to watch the movie as much as I want within 24 hours, then it's gone. Let's say my kids (if I had any) wanted to watch "Meet the Robinsons" a week later. I'd have to pay $3.99 again, and get another 24 hour rental. We're already at $7.98 for that month with iTunes. One more movie rental, and the family has hit $11.97 for the month, with only a 72-hour viewing window.
With the Netflix service, I'm getting DVDs in the mail for $9.99 per month. We can stream "Ratatouille" any time we like, for no added charge. We're still at $9.99 per month. A week later the imaginary kids want to watch "Meet the Robinsons", and presto! We stream it, and we've still only spent $9.99 this month. They can watch it again and again, days in a row, for no additional charge and without a "rental window" expiration. They can watch a movie every day, and we're STILL only spending $9.99 per month... And that's not even counting the 15-20 movies we rent on DVD that month from Netflix.
Watch more than 3 movies a month on iTunes and you go over the Netflix base price.
Personally, I watch WAY more than 3 movies a month. I see no way iTunes/Apple TV is cost-effective in that scenario.
Since this is still rumor; I'll put my spin on it.
Hopefully the idea is like backup or primary storage of all your iTunes purchases. You buy a movie or song and download it to your computer. Later your computer shits the bed and you can get it fixed and re download your stuff, or stream it directly from apples servers. If every purchase from iTunes store came with built in off site backups, it would actually add some value to buying from apple.
The article has brought something to the forefront of my mind. When the hell are apple going to have a 4th branch of their business and start making games consoles? Competition is a wonderful thing.
they won't make game consoles that do movies (xbox360)
They'll make movie players that do games, kinda like the iphone.
And the games will be casual. Don't expect Halo and Gears of War.
As soon as I posted I remembered the summary of an enormous study that I read recently that basically was showing the massive shift away from console gaming onto the subscription based online market. That's a trend in less economically developed countries like Russia where folks don't wanna drop tons of cash on a console although judging by how EVERYTHING has gone - convenience will always win - like MP3, Netflix / streaming movies etc so I wouldn't be surprised if consoles start having less of a focus in coming years & judging by the cashcow that iphone apps / games is proving to be I think you're probably right about what Apple is likely to do...
I personally watch WAY less than 3 movies a month, so the netflix DVDs tend to lie around until I cancel the service. If they had titles at the same time as DVDs came out on the streaming service, I'd subscribe again. Similarly, if Apple had the same movies available to watch around the same time as the DVDs came out, I would PAY to rent them on my Apple TV. Or pay a monthly fee, whatever. I just want the damn movies at the same time as they come out on DVD. I don't want physical DVDs any more!
I personally wouldn't bother with it. I never liked the concept of the 24hr digital rent, and now that I'm a netflix subscriber I personally wouldn't find any value in it, especially with iTunes movies costing as much as their DVD counterparts (which always seemed stupid to me)